


Too Sick For School?

by HiddenSt0rms



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Common Cold, Fever, Gen, Marvel Universe, Parent Tony Stark, Parent-Child Relationship, Sick Peter Parker, Sickfic, Sneezing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-06
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2020-10-10 22:07:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20535365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenSt0rms/pseuds/HiddenSt0rms
Summary: Tony drives a sick and stubborn Peter back to Stark Tower on a school morning.





	Too Sick For School?

Peter Parker curses when the obnoxious jingle blaring from his phone shoots daggers into his head. He’s already hit snooze four times and goes for a fifth, but the numbers flashing at him convince him otherwise. Doing so would no doubt make him late, so he groans and turns off the alarm for good.

Going to bed early had been useless. He still feels terrible, if not worse. It feels like there’s a layer of ice between his skin and the blankets, yet his skin still feels so hot to the touch. There’s a pressure growing in his head that makes maintaining a coherent line of thought near impossible. Swallowing hurts like a bitch, and he’s genuinely confused as to how his nose can still be stuffed while it’s leaking like a faucet.

What luck for this to happen while he’s staying at Stark Tower. His Aunt May is away on business and all the begging in the world hadn’t convinced her to let him stay by himself. For God’s sake, he’s a whole superhero and still being babysat. It’s humiliating, but not as humiliating as what’s running down onto his upper lip.

Peter weakly fumbles around in Steve’s bedside table drawer in hopes of a conveniently placed tissue box, but he finds nothing. Figures. If only he were by himself in his own apartment. Then he could stay home on his own accord and be left alone. Spiderman doesn’t get sick, and he’d like to keep that narrative.

Regardless, he needs a tissue, and _now_. He stands up, only to sit back down when the floor tilts beneath his feet. There’s a knock on the door, and Peter is praying to whoever’s up there that Tony doesn’t open it.

“Are you up? Don’t think you’re skipping school just because your aunt is out of town.”

Peter clears the junk off his vocal cords and forces a semi-bright tone. “I’m up.” His voice is rough and cracks at the end, but he hears footsteps growing faint as they move away from the door.

Peter thanks the being on his side, and much slower this time, stands back up. The edges of his vision are fuzzy, the room is moving around, but he’s desperately in need of relief. He stumbles down the hall to the bathroom and rips off a few squares of toilet paper. It’s soaked within seconds. He’s not sure if the action brought more harm than good, because he’s now muffling an otherwise loud sneeze into the crumpled ball of paper. _“Hh’MHNFF!”_

Blowing his nose one last time, Peter looks in the mirror to access what needs to be done to his appearance. He combs through his messy hair a few times before his arm gives out. His face looks one shade away from death, so he splashes up some cool water, but all it does is make him look pale and sweaty, rather than perfectly well. Aborting that plan, Peter wipes his face dry and tries to figure out what to do about his red nose. The only thing he can think of his Chapstick, so he rubs a little around the edges. It helps a little, but not nearly enough.

Here’s to hoping Tony’s not too observant today.

Peter finishes getting ready and finds his mentor sitting in a chair, keys in one hand, phone in the other. Tony doesn’t look up to acknowledge Peter’s presence, only standing up with his eyes still staring at the screen. “No breakfast?”

Peter clears his throat. “Oh, I’ve already eaten a granola bar.” It’s a blatant lie if there ever was.

Tony looks up from his phone and studies Peter for a second. He knows voices sound weird at Peter’s age, hell he’d been through it himself, but the kid sounds hoarse weird, not puberty weird. “What’s with your voice?”

“I uh, I just woke up.”

Tony doesn’t look too convinced, but if they don’t leave now, Peter will be late, and May will never let them hear the end of it. “Alright then.”

With that, Peter trails behind the tall man down the corridors until they’re settled in the car. Peter goes for the backseat, wanting as little interaction with Tony as possible.

The first few minutes are bearable. With Tony’s gaze glued to traffic (and his phone, but only at red lights so it doesn’t count!), Peter is able to get away with wiping his nose on his sleeve and silently scrubbing at his nose. If only the steadily growing itch would hold off until he was at school and out of Tony’s presence.

Or his body would fail him and his lungs would fill up automatically. Peter knows his luck isn’t the best, but this just seems excessive. Unable to stop himself, Peter buries his face into the crook of his arm. _“Heh-tisshew! Hih’tsshhhuh!” _He finishes it off with a thick sniffle. It was either that or snotting all over the interior of Tony’s nice car.

Now with redder cheeks, Peter keeps his eyes focused out the window as if that’d keep Tony’s attention to the road as well, but the older man is sharper than he lets on.

“You getting sick?”

The words stop Peter’s heart for a moment, but he’s quick to regain composure. “No.” He knows he just straight lied to Mr. Stark’s face, well back of head, but only little kids miss school for a cold, and he’s not a little kid.

“Ah, my mistake. You’re _already_ sick.”

“I’m fine.”

“You sound sick to me.”

Peter sighs. Apparently Tony’s in one of his interrogation moods. “It’s just a cold. I’m fine, alright?”

Tony is glad he’s facing forward so Peter can’t see his frown. He can see out of the rear view mirror the kid wiping his nose, rubbing his head, resting his head against the window. Tony curses internally. Peter’s clearly sick, but how sick is too sick for school? How was he supposed to know? “Do I need to turn around and take your ass home?”

“No, I already said I’m fine.” Peter says this with a bite to his tone.

“I’m not gonna be very happy if the nurse calls demanding I pick you up later. Despite what you may think, I do have a life outside this.”

“Wouldn’t want to inconvenience you.”

The car approaches a stoplight. Left is a way back home and right is the direction of the school. Last chance, Tony figures. “Your call, kid. Left or right?”

“Right.”

Tony isn’t one to consider himself a father by any means, but there’s a nagging instinct that’s telling him to take Peter back home. He ignores the obvious sounds of confusion from the backseat and turns the car left.

“Since when are you dyslexic?”

“I’m taking you home, smartass.”

“What?”

Tony glances at Peter through the rear view mirror. “Look kid, I don’t know much about this kind of stuff, but your aunt will kill me if she finds out I let you go to school sick.” 

“For the last time, I’m fine! Don’t you believe me?”

“Give me one good reason why I should.”

Peter bites his tongue at that one and crosses his arms. He shouldn’t be shaking so much for an October morning, yet he can’t stop his teeth from chattering. Tony notices this and reaches for a dial. “You want the heat on, kid?”

“No! Geez, I’m _fine_! Why don’t you turn the car around and take me to school?” Peter can’t believe he actually tried to tell Tony Stark of all people what to do, but he’s feeling too out of it to truly give it much attention.

Tony increases his grip on the wheel. He’s entirely out of his element here, with only instinct to rely on, and how would one explain instinct in a situation like this? Adopting a harsher tone, Tony intensifies his glare at Peter with the mirror. “Don’t make this ride more miserable than it already is. I for one was looking forward to being rid of you for the day.”

Either that truly got Peter to shut up, or the kid just didn’t care; either way, Peter gives one final sigh before resting his head against the window in defeat. The low hum of the car quickly pulls him asleep.

Tony is glad about this, because when they arrive back at Stark Tower, he has a minute of privacy to look up home remedies on his phone.


End file.
